Students sharpen skills through research
Bryant students complement their classroom learning by presenting their work at academic conferences.
Many college students spend time on social networking sites connecting with friends and sharing information about themselves. Heather Vogel ’10 (Methuen, MA) and Brynn Woodland ’10 (Orleans, MA) found a way to make their time on the popular sites a little more rewarding.
As part of Counseling Theory, a psychology course they took last semester, the pair created MySpace and Facebook pages for Crossroads Rhode Island, a Providence homeless shelter, to help solicit donations and volunteers to work with the organization.
“I learned how powerful social networks can be in reaching large numbers of people at almost no cost to the organization,” says Vogel, an accounting concentrator. “This is a great opportunity for nonprofit organizations with low advertising budgets to spread information about their organizations’ missions.”
The pair was part of a poster presentation last month at the Northeast Regional Computing Program Annual Conference in Providence titled "Creative Intersections, Wise Collaborations, and Sustainable Technology."
Woodland, an applied psychology major, says the project helped her appreciate the synergy between the business and liberal arts courses she has taken at Bryant. “We used what we learned in psychology courses to think about ways in which we could help Crossroads’ clients, and we used knowledge we gained in different computer and business courses to create the pages.”
Both students plan to continue their work with Crossroads this summer, and Vogel will start an accounting internship there in the fall.
Applied Psychology Professor Janet Morahan-Martin, who taught Vogel and Woodland in the Counseling Theory class, says the project gave the students an opportunity to learn more about the inner workings of a nonprofit organization and the potential of social networks as marketing tools.
“Both Heather and Brynn are very capable young women,” says Morahan-Martin. “I was impressed with their dedication to the project.”
Making connections
Sam Schultz ’09 (Bellingham, MA) is a strong proponent of engaging in service learning and community service projects.
As a youth outreach volunteer at Crossroads, he learned that nearly a quarter of gay and lesbian youths were forced to leave their homes due to conflicts with their families. The past president of Bryant Pride, the student-run organization that promotes understanding of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) individuals, decided to examine this issue and the social stigmas associated with the homeless and homosexual populations.
He recently shared his research as part of the First Statewide Student Service Summit sponsored by the Rhode Island Campus Compact, a statewide coalition of colleges and universities committed to teaching the values of civic engagement and public leadership.
“I saw this conference as an opportunity to share my experiences as a service-learning student at Bryant with others,” says Schultz, who will be a teacher in the Providence Summerbridge program for inner-city youths after graduation. “Looking back at everything I had been involved with at Bryant, I realized how instrumental the work I did as a youth outreach volunteer at Crossroads was to my education.”
Building real-world skills
Another student, Qian (Julia) Chang ’10 (Zhu Hai, China), presented her research, “Does Economic Performance Impact U.S. Trade Flow?,” at the Eastern Economic Association undergraduate paper session in February. The paper examined how the financial crisis is affecting trade between the U.S. and its partners.
A double concentrator in economics and accounting, Chang started her research last semester as part of an International Trade class she took with Assistant Economics Professor Edinaldo Tebaldi. Over winter break, she worked with Tebaldi to refine the paper and submit it to the conference.
“Outside research is very important because it helps broaden viewpoints and generate new ideas,” says Chang, who would like to work for the United Nations, or teach at the college level one day. “Professor Tebaldi taught me to be precise and critical in my work.”
Tebaldi believes that the high-level research required to be accepted by an academic conference prepares students with skills that will help them succeed after graduation. Last year, two groups of students shared papers they co-authored at the same conference.
“Presenting their research helps students build a strong portfolio that shows leadership, presentation, and communication skills,” he says. “These are important competencies needed to succeed in today's workplace and highly demanded by employers in different industries.”
Chang will present another paper, “Are Educated Women Less Likely to Get Married,” at the 2nd Annual Bryant Economic Undergraduate Symposium. As part of the event, which will take place on Wednesday, April 29, at 2 p.m. in M33, a dozen students will present empirical research papers on a variety of topics ranging from housing and education to healthcare, inflation, and poverty.
Award–winning research
Earlier this month, Ryan Scadding ’07, ’08 MPAc learned that a paper he started as part of his Honors Program senior capstone project was awarded a top honor by The CPA Journal. “Mortgage-Backed Securities and Fair-Value Accounting,” which was co-authored with Tim Krumwiede, associate professor of accounting, and Craig Stevens ’98, senior manager of complex accounting at Deloitte, received The CPA Journal’s 2008 Max Block Award for the most outstanding article in the category of technical analysis.
Scadding currently works at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Boston.
As part of Counseling Theory, a psychology course they took last semester, the pair created MySpace and Facebook pages for Crossroads Rhode Island, a Providence homeless shelter, to help solicit donations and volunteers to work with the organization.
“I learned how powerful social networks can be in reaching large numbers of people at almost no cost to the organization,” says Vogel, an accounting concentrator. “This is a great opportunity for nonprofit organizations with low advertising budgets to spread information about their organizations’ missions.”
The pair was part of a poster presentation last month at the Northeast Regional Computing Program Annual Conference in Providence titled "Creative Intersections, Wise Collaborations, and Sustainable Technology."
Woodland, an applied psychology major, says the project helped her appreciate the synergy between the business and liberal arts courses she has taken at Bryant. “We used what we learned in psychology courses to think about ways in which we could help Crossroads’ clients, and we used knowledge we gained in different computer and business courses to create the pages.”
Both students plan to continue their work with Crossroads this summer, and Vogel will start an accounting internship there in the fall.
Applied Psychology Professor Janet Morahan-Martin, who taught Vogel and Woodland in the Counseling Theory class, says the project gave the students an opportunity to learn more about the inner workings of a nonprofit organization and the potential of social networks as marketing tools.
“Both Heather and Brynn are very capable young women,” says Morahan-Martin. “I was impressed with their dedication to the project.”
Making connections
Sam Schultz ’09 (Bellingham, MA) is a strong proponent of engaging in service learning and community service projects.
As a youth outreach volunteer at Crossroads, he learned that nearly a quarter of gay and lesbian youths were forced to leave their homes due to conflicts with their families. The past president of Bryant Pride, the student-run organization that promotes understanding of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) individuals, decided to examine this issue and the social stigmas associated with the homeless and homosexual populations.
He recently shared his research as part of the First Statewide Student Service Summit sponsored by the Rhode Island Campus Compact, a statewide coalition of colleges and universities committed to teaching the values of civic engagement and public leadership.
“I saw this conference as an opportunity to share my experiences as a service-learning student at Bryant with others,” says Schultz, who will be a teacher in the Providence Summerbridge program for inner-city youths after graduation. “Looking back at everything I had been involved with at Bryant, I realized how instrumental the work I did as a youth outreach volunteer at Crossroads was to my education.”
Building real-world skills
Another student, Qian (Julia) Chang ’10 (Zhu Hai, China), presented her research, “Does Economic Performance Impact U.S. Trade Flow?,” at the Eastern Economic Association undergraduate paper session in February. The paper examined how the financial crisis is affecting trade between the U.S. and its partners.
A double concentrator in economics and accounting, Chang started her research last semester as part of an International Trade class she took with Assistant Economics Professor Edinaldo Tebaldi. Over winter break, she worked with Tebaldi to refine the paper and submit it to the conference.
“Outside research is very important because it helps broaden viewpoints and generate new ideas,” says Chang, who would like to work for the United Nations, or teach at the college level one day. “Professor Tebaldi taught me to be precise and critical in my work.”
Tebaldi believes that the high-level research required to be accepted by an academic conference prepares students with skills that will help them succeed after graduation. Last year, two groups of students shared papers they co-authored at the same conference.
“Presenting their research helps students build a strong portfolio that shows leadership, presentation, and communication skills,” he says. “These are important competencies needed to succeed in today's workplace and highly demanded by employers in different industries.”
Chang will present another paper, “Are Educated Women Less Likely to Get Married,” at the 2nd Annual Bryant Economic Undergraduate Symposium. As part of the event, which will take place on Wednesday, April 29, at 2 p.m. in M33, a dozen students will present empirical research papers on a variety of topics ranging from housing and education to healthcare, inflation, and poverty.
Award–winning research
Earlier this month, Ryan Scadding ’07, ’08 MPAc learned that a paper he started as part of his Honors Program senior capstone project was awarded a top honor by The CPA Journal. “Mortgage-Backed Securities and Fair-Value Accounting,” which was co-authored with Tim Krumwiede, associate professor of accounting, and Craig Stevens ’98, senior manager of complex accounting at Deloitte, received The CPA Journal’s 2008 Max Block Award for the most outstanding article in the category of technical analysis.
Scadding currently works at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Boston.
